Join the Club
Having a mental illness is not about being a member of an exclusive club, in fact it is a club inclusive of so many people…… vast swathes of people who refuse to admit or are actually unaware of their impending mental health challenges. Some souls find this affliction so disdainful the potential insults them to their core. However mental unwellness has a way fronting up in your life despite all the resistance one can muster! How many persons are ultimately forced to acknowledge their mental suffering from within the four walls of their doctors or psychologists office or the four walls of a mental health facility? How many of you out there refuse to entertain a mental health diagnosis and proceed through life undiagnosed and untreated. Battling through invisible barriers and not reaching your full potential, not realizing dreams because of judgement, ignorance, socio-economic restraints or perceived stigma. Stigma that society is too slow to erase and that people are too quick to label. Are you stung by familial beliefs and observances during childhood. Maybe you are embarrassed by, or engulfed in guilt from childhood trauma or behavior! Are you living in false belief that nothing can change the journey you are travelling and this trajectory is catapulting you into a life unfulfilled. You deteriorate into a darkening world of increasing emotional and mental disharmony, suffering and terror. To the horror of those in your orbit your challenges are obvious but the changing landscape has you oblivious to outcomes negatively affecting your own life . Where once you could have made choices, your capitulation into the mire of mental illness takes choice from your hands. Outside forces now govern your life! Being intercepted is your savior. Though memories thereon are vague and cloudy the extended recovery can begin, and ongoing management will improve circumstances markedly. The alternative to the mire of mental unwellness is fundamentally simple and small.
The regime to renewed mental wellness is relatively straight forward and includes assessment by a team of individual mental health professionals for diagnosis and development and implementation of treatment plan. A record of ones life and recent history and an array of medical tests is important. A person’s treatment maybe included at an inpatient facility or in home care. Admission to a facility is based on the risk one poses to themself or others and may include other significant observations.
Fact is, humans seem to notice physical illness and are prepared to take a ‘pill’ prescribed or over the counter medication for a myriad of infections or illnesses, with some exceptions of course. However many harboring symptoms of deteriorating mental health do not or cannot acknowledge their compromised mental state. And that has a potential to impact them immensely and ultimately has far reaching ramifications for them, family, friends and the community. Many do not even recognize the deterioration of their mental health and are reliant on those in their circle to bear witness to and be ‘brave’ enough to intercept. Implementation of treatment requires a determination to comply with a range of complimenting treatment/s that may indeed be lifelong. One needs to understand the implications of being non-compliant and ideally have insight and a will to consistently commit to a prolonged and changing regimes when dealing with medication for a mental illnesses. Non-compliance pertains to side effects and lack of insight, though with perseverance side effects can subside and the alternative is very unpalatable indeed. Finding the right treatment combination may be challenging and take an extended period, but perseverance is king and indicators are that compliancy with prescribed interventions will ensure a quality of life one strives for.
Now it needs to be stated that timely intervention is crucial in treating major mental illnesses. Research has indicated that the sooner an individual begins tratment the more likely they are to experience a positive outcome. Conversely, a pattern of repeated relapses and significant psychiatric interventions can contribute to the illness becoming more chronic, leading to longer and more persistent periods of symptoms.
OUTCOME;
Ideal Pathway = Intervention-Compliance-Insight-Patience-Recovery-Life with Purpose, Happiness and Peace!
